Inspired by the romantic English Gardens of Sissinghurst, Kiftsgate and Barnsley, the Heuermann garden creates an illusion of the past, tranquil beauty and elegance, and yet a sense of changing moods. Just inside the stone entry gates, the perennial gardens, planted for color, texture and all seasonal beauty, surround and frame the Tudor Style Home. Borders and berms of roses, hollies, azaleas, magnolias, dogwood and evergreens are interspersed with masses of annual and perennial plantings. A stone pathway leads through the garden gate to a view of the Illinois river and valley. Clipped box hedges, English roses, salvia and sage, dogwoods and crabs are intermingled in small gardens defined by a cut stone patio. At the center of the garden, a tiered stone fountain splashes into a rectangular English basin. Thyme, ajuga, Ladies' Mantle and veronicas spill over onto stonewalls, paths, and walkways, creating a vision of the misty Cotswald gardens of England. Clematis, roses and wisteria climb the terraced walls and the tall wrought iron fences. Gardens of clipped yews and colorful perennials form small vistas that lead to a music garden, a simple statue and a small pond. The Heuermann gardens were designed by Tracy Heuermann after a garden trip to England.

Six years ago the Crawfords built their home and designed the gardens to compliment it. Emphasis was on creating intresting garden scenes to view throughout the year from within the house. John, an architect, designed the house and hard landscaping, while Nancy, as a landscape design critic and long time gardener, designed the gardens and planted most of the plant material. The site is on the grounds of an old orchard on the former McNear farm. Two of the fruit trees remain and still produce fruit. Nancy planted several evergreens and a magnolia (from a cutting) twenty-one years ago on part of the property in exactly the right spot. The large berm along the street is planted with many grasses, evergreens, shrubs, perennials and annuals to provide ever changing interest. Three smaller berms surround the patio; two are for full sun perennials, and the third contains a small pond and waterfall surrounded by an assortment of alpines, dwarf conifers, Japanese maple, hostas, perennials and bulbs. Young trees include a dawn redwood, bur oak, “Accolade” elm, Cedar of Lebanon, and an Irish Oak in addition to many dogwoods and magnolias. Microclimate experiments include an “Edith Bogue” southern Magnolia, a Blue Atlas weeping cedar, and many other zone six evergreens. The landscaping at the front and next to the house emphasizes ease of maintenance and year round interest with an assortment of broadleaf evergreens, dwarf conifers, and perennials chosen for leaves which provide nine months of beauty. At the very rear of the site, a grouping of huge black locust create a shady area for hostas and companion perennials...as does a side garden shaded by seventy year old pines.

My garden is the result of selling my art gallery and having free time to actually look out the living room window and see, as if for the first time, how boring the grass in the backyard looked and how nice a pond might look there. Well, one thing led to another, to put it mildly, and five manic years after I had moved tons of gravel and planted countless trees, shrubs and hostas. I created a pond and a Japanese Zen Stroll Garden with a choice of benches. Now you can sit in the shade and remove yourself from the cares of your everyday life, (one care removed is absolutely no lawn to take care of). You can live in the moment, relax, feel the breeze, watch the fish, hear the water splashing, while frogs croak and the birds sing. The Japanese Zen Stroll gardens are designed so that the path clearly guides you along while part of the garden always remains hidden. It is exciting to stroll along the path, with the possibility of something new being revealed at each turn.

Situated on nearly an acre of land in West Peoria, the gardens surround the original Victorian homestead. These gardens have evolved for over 100 years, lovingly tended and constantly changed by five generations of families. The house and gardens are steeped in historical lore, and were once the scene of grape vineyards and a wine garden. The Barn-Carriage House in the back has served as a home to horses, chickens, rabbits and more, and the land itself is rich and fertile as a result. A large collection of hosta thrive here, thanks to the passion of the previous gardener, Romaine Franzgrote, and many of the trees and shrubs are 50-100 years old. A walk around this garden reveals a constantly changing canvas of trees, shrubs, perennials, herbs and annuals, growing in connected areas of full shade to sun. We have been adding our own touches now for the past twenty years, and continue to strive for beauty and a sense of place that embraces both the house and family within.

The Andrades bought the abandoned land that is now their garden some twenty years ago. It was once was used as a dump, but today it is a virtual cornucopia. Behind the chainlink fence off Lincoln Avenue lays an orchard of plum, apple, cherry and pear trees. In the vegetable garden are blue and white potatoes, multicolored popcorn, Mexican tomatoes, plus an assortment of peppers including jalapeños, cayenne, Cyrano, and hot banana. Andy’s radishes, according to his neighbors, are the largest grown anywhere in town. Andy has brought the flavor of his native Mexico into his garden. The visitor enters the garden through an arched trellis. In its cement base is etched, among his grandchildren’s names, the Spanish words “Padre de Todos,” (Father of All). Colorful floral rosettes decorate the fence, cactus sit in red clay pots, the Mexican flag and its colors decorate his windmill, while horse shoes from his parent’s ranch hang on the garage wall. Statues of the Virgin Mary are interspersed with statues of American pop figures of Mickey Mouse and Porky Pig. There is no waste or extravagance in this garden, the soil is fed with the compost he makes and all his plants are grown from seed. In the narrow strip of land between the garage and alley, peanuts are grown, while popsicles for the grandchildren are made from the juice of the grapes. Always sharing the bountiful harvest with his friends, Andy says there is still plenty for the birds, rabbits and squirrels. Even so, his scarecrow, dressed to look like him, is designed to ward off at least some of the critters interested in his vegetable garden. The overall effect of the garden is eclectic and completely original. Set on reclaimed land, its unique selection of plants is melded with a generosity of purpose and diversity of use. But at its core, the garden is a place to sit and relax with family and friends. It is a place to watch the grandchildren play, the pedestrians pass by or stop at the chapel, and to enjoy watching the critters coming and going.

The Riffle garden is primarily a "theme" garden with at least twenty-six different areas of the gardens devoted to a common subject such as: Saints, Tea, Fairy, Textile and Dye, Medicinal, Christmas, Culinary, Witches, Birds, Cats, Crafters, Fragrance, Japanese, Secret, and Booze. Pinky collects not only plants but hose nozzles, antiques and bird houses for the garden. She has a variety of gardens from container planting to alpine gardens in troughs, from succulents, to hosta and herb gardens, as well as mosses, water and bog plants, not to mention espalier and standardizing (topiary) plants. Pinky loves to share her garden with those who are interested in all the joys a garden can bring. Pinky has worked for design and beauty using contrast and texture to create something of interest all year round, with bloom from February to December. Each plant has been researched and Pinky has studied its lore. Bob takes care of the lawn, vegetables and compost. The Riffles hope you will enjoy their ever changing gardens and that you discover something that is new and fresh to you.

DVDs of the WTVP production, “Unearthed: Garden Stories,” will be available for $19.95 at the Crawford Garden.

THANK YOU CONTRIBUTORS!!!

We want to thank the following businesses who have contributed
to the success our Garden Stories Tour:

GARDEN STORIES TOUR Map
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on the tour)

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